An electrostatic chuck (ESC) may be coupled to a component of a substrate support by, for example, an adhesive layer. As the feature size of devices to continue to shrink, the processes by which such devices are fabricated increasingly require higher temperature processes. The inventors have observed that conventional adhesive layers typically utilized to bond the ESC can become degraded by the higher temperature processes and may cause the ESC to delaminate from the component to which it is bonded. Such delamination may cause process uniformity issues as well as particle contamination from pieces of the adhesive layer.
Moreover, many processes being utilized or developed to fabricate smaller feature size devices also utilize increased RF power, which can further exacerbate the above-noted temperature problem and may also erode the adhesive layer.
Accordingly, the inventors have provided methods and apparatus for improving the bond between an ESC chuck and a component of a substrate support.